Lost at Sea
by Cornelius B Porter
Summary: Shirou is a sailor who falls overboard his ship and Mephisto is a merman who saves him from drowning and takes him back to a lone island because he has an interest in humans


Silence. Those who had survived the wild waves always talked about the pressure of the water against their chests. It is what every sailor expected when they fall into the icy sea, but no one ever spoke of the silence that follows once you go under the waves.

Does this mean he was already dying? Shirou's limbs felt heavy, and the current pulled him further from the surface as he struggled against it. He knew it was futile to fight Mother Nature's wrath as his vision began to fade at the edges.

A sudden yank on his leg evoked a painful gasp. The saltwater burned as it rushed down his throat and made him inhale more water as he choked. Panic seized him further, his chest felt as though it was about to burst. He slipped into unconsciousness with thoughts of his impending death filling his head. He never would have believed what happened next if he hadn't lived it.

A rough, grainy surface pressed against his side. Something pounded against his back; he lurched forward and forced water out of his lungs. It stung like hell, but allowed his body to breathe more easily. The hammering continued upon his back until he let out a groan in protest. He took a few moments in an attempt to assess his surroundings. He could hear the sound of the ocean at his back, and what he laid on was obviously sand on the shore. The coastline continued further than his blurred vision would allow him to see and the slight soreness to his skin when he squinted suggested sunburn. Water tumbled up onto the land and lapped at the sailor's feet; the ocean waves were even cold at the shore. What appeared to be groves of trees laid in the distance near the center of the island. He could not see beyond that point.

"Shit…" Not only was his vision impaired, but his body was sore from the beating of the waves and the strikes upon his back. He went still as he focused on that thought. He quickly rolled over to find himself face to face with a man. Purple hair draped across his shoulders, and a set of green eyes stared at Shirou curiously. It was on closer inspection that Shirou realized that between the locks of violet hair were a set of fin-like ears, and further down colorful gills graced a slender neck. Eyes trailed down skin that was speckled and striped with shades of blue and purple until it gradually turned into scales and fins. A spiny tail lay on the sand where the man's legs should have been. Shirou's brain froze for a few moments as it tried to process what he was seeing.

"What the hell!" he exclaimed. Was he actually dead? There was no way that this could be real. Why the hell would such a creature as this be in heaven? Unless he had ended up in Hell... Either way this wasn't exactly an ideal situation. A laugh bubbled out of the other's mouth.

"An expected reaction from a human." The finned creature grinned at the further confusion of the sailor. The exposed teeth were pointed and far from human.

"So many of you humans have ended up here, but not any with such an interesting appearance as yourself. And not usually with help either, for most of you make it here on your own accord." Green flecked eyes looked over pale blond hair and squinting red eyes.

"Oh! I would assume these yours, as they were upon your body when I dragged you ashore!" The being, which Shirou had guessed to be some sort of mermaid, twisted his body around to grab and reveal his spectacles. A disgruntled Shirou reached forth to grab them from clawed hands and thrust them onto this face. He made sure to tighten the strap on the back so not to lose them again. At this point he started to realize that his clothes had begun to dry and stiffen from the seawater, and he would need to remove them before they became too uncomfortable to wear.

"Are you… a mer…man?" Now that his mind had cleared of the aftermath of almost drowning, this was the only way he could describe the creature in front of him, not that he had much experience with beings that shouldn't exist.

"That is indeed a word that your kind uses although we don't really have a word for my kind." His voice was symphonic; as though his words were strung together in an unfaltering melody. The merman then blinked, though it wasn't with his normal eyelids. A set of clear lids momentarily covered the green eyes as he kept staring at the sailor.

"I… uh gotta get out of these clothes. They're getting stiff from all the saltwater and won't be too comfortable in a minute." Shirou went to push himself up, his limbs weak from the ordeal. As he wobbled further inland the merman rolled back into the ocean only to reemerge to swim up an inlet that lead to the center of the island.

"Most of the time you humans are in a hurry to go on and on about whom you are and what grand adventures you were on your way to, yet you've neglected even to give me your name." Shirou gave the sea dweller the side eye as he slowly loosened the ties of his top. He didn't have a problem with getting changed in front of others since it was the norm aboard the ship, but this did feel a bit weird. He turned his back as he slipped the shirt over his head.

"It's Shirou… Do they give names to you at birth or do ya just point at each other eh." The merman chuckled.

"You can call me Mephisto."


End file.
